Manchester City rounded off the first full round of Premier League fixtures after the restart, comfortably dispatching Burnley to delay Liverpool’s title procession.
Despite the supposed futility of their match against Burnley, due to the insurmountable 20-point gap between themselves and Liverpool, Manchester City turned on the style to seal an emphatic win.
The hosts were knocking on the door from the outset, and scored their first goal when Phil Foden picked out the bottom corner with an incredibly accurate strike from outside the area after 21 minutes.
Riyad Mahrez then struck twice just before half time, with his second coming from the penalty spot, to give City a 3-0 lead before the break. Second-half goals from David Silva (51′) and a second from Phil Foden (63′) then rounded off the five-goal victory.
However, the result has done little to change the overall circumstances at the top of the table. Liverpool are now just four points away from securing their first title in 30 years, meaning that they could seal the deal when they play Manchester City themselves at the Etihad in nine days’ time.
Matchday 31 got underway the following day, as Tottenham hosted West Ham. Jose Mourinho’s men looked sharp once again, as they did in their match against Manchester United, and looked eager to make amends after being denied full points in their last home game.
Son Heung-Min thought he had given the hosts the lead just before half time, only for his strike to be chalked off after VAR found him to be just a fraction of an inch offside.
They eventually had their reward in the 64th minute when Giovani Lo Celso’s delivery came off West Ham defender Tomas Soucek and rolled into the visitors’ net for an own goal. Harry Kane then wrapped up the victory with eight minutes remaining, beating the offside trap during a quick counter-attack to seal the points for Tottenham.
Elsewhere, in the day’s earlier match, Leicester played out a scoreless draw against Brighton. Kasper Schmeichel managed to deny Neal Maupay from the penalty spot after just 14 minutes as the visitors made a few threatening advances in the opening stages.
Despite the lions’ share of possession, the Foxes failed to create many clear-cut chances, finishing the game with just two shots on target. The result leaves Leicester at risk of being dragged into the tight race for the final Champions League spots, where Chelsea and Manchester United, Wolves and Tottenham are eagerly waiting for their chance to strike.